Physics 109: General Physics I
General Information
| Lecture: | MWF 9:10-10:10 AM & T 8:30-9:30 in Halsey 268 |
| Laboratory: | Thursdays in Halsey 360 |
| Instructor: | Dennis Rioux (rioux@uwosh.edu) |
| Tutors: | hours to be announced -- HS 346 |
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| Content: | A survey of mechanics, sound, and thermodynamics that provides a background for advanced work in these fields. The material is developed using a calculus-based approach, and no prior physics knowledge is assumed or required. Recommended for students in pre-engineering and majors in physics. General Physics I is taught using a traditional lecture-lab structure. The lecture periods include in-class activities designed to reinforce the material being presented by the instructor. |
Discussion Questions
Throughout this semester, I will ask you multiple choice questions based on material that has been presented to you in class. These questions are designed to give you immediate feedback on your grasp of the new material that we cover each day. Your answers are not recorded and your performance does not influence your grade. I hope that you will use them as a tool to help you develop your understanding of physics. The questions will remain accessible from this web page all semester long so that you can review them whenever you like. Click on any of the links below to access the questions.
Jump to question number: 1 11 21 31 41 51 61 71 81 91 101 111 121 131
Jump to today's first question: 38
Physlets
The java applets that we use in class to illustrate physics concepts can be found here.
| Kinematics |
speed & velocity |
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Dynamics |
projectile motion |
1 |
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position matching |
2 |
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forces on a hockey puck |
2 |
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position matching |
3 |
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steering a hockey puck |
3 |
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velocity matching |
4 |
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force & trajectory in 2D |
4 |
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acceleration matching |
5 |
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forces on a space probe |
5 |
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vector decomposition |
6 |
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Waves |
waves & pulses |
1 |
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v and a in 2D |
7 |
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traveling waves I |
2 |
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projectile motion I |
8 |
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traveling waves II |
3 |
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projectile motion II |
9 |
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superposition of traveling waves |
4 |
Documents
The course syllabus and other documents handed out in class can be accessed from this web page.
| Syllabus |
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Homework Sets |
1 |
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Solutions |
1 |
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| Practice Kinematics Graphs |
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2 |
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2 |
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| Practice Kinematics Solutions |
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3 |
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3 |
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| Kinematic Equations |
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4 |
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4 |
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| Kinematics on a Page |
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5 |
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| Topic List Exam #1 |
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| Formula Sheet #1 |
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| Practice Exam #1 |
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| Topic List Exam #2 |
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| Formula Sheet #2 |
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| Practice Exam #2 |
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Suggested Readings
There are books and articles that I think are well worth reading if you have an interest in delving deeper into the subject matter of basic physics. Some of these are listed below, and I will bring them to your attention at the appropriate time in class. If there is a subject that you are interested in learning more about but you don't see a reference to it here, please ask and I will try to hunt something down for you.
Basic Mechanics
- Galileo: A Life by James Reston
- A biography of Galileo that tends to look favorably upon Galileo in his conflict with the Church over the heliocentric model of the Universe.
- Galileo, Science, and the Church by Jerome Langford
- A biography of Galileo that tends to look favorably upon the Church in its conflict with Galileo over the heliocentric model of the Universe.
- Sir Isaac Newton by E.N. da C. Andrade
- A short, barebones biography of Newton that is good for getting some essential facts about his life. The book is in the public domain and I can let you reproduce my copy if you have trouble tracking this book down.
- The Evolution of Physics by Leopold Infeld and Albert Einstein
- The story of the transition from the geocentric model of the Universe to the heliocentric model and beyond.
Relativity
- Albert Einstein: Creator and Rebel by Banesh Hoffmann
- A very good biography of Einstein, and one whose scientific discussions should be very accessible to you after our chapter on relativity.
- Relativity and its Roots by Banesh Hoffmann
- A primer on relativity that is accessible to the lay reader.
- The ABCs of Relativity by Bertrand Russell
- Another good primer on relativity that is accessible to the lay reader.
- Newton to Einstein: The Trail of Light by Ralph Baierlein
- A textbook dedicated to the story of how our view of the nature of light has evolved. Beginning with the classical physics battle royale between Newton's corpuscular theory and the wave theory of Huygens and Young, the book concludes with the modern theories of the photon and relativity.
- Ideas and Opinions by Albert Einstein
- Short works by Einstein on a number of topics.
Dennis' Homepage
| Physics Department Homepage
| UW Oshkosh Homepage
Last updated on 6 October 2008